Dead
by Posessed-by-the-music
Summary: Set Post-Tempted. Zoey wakes up in a weird world where everything is too perfect and uncovers some shocking truths about her beloved.
1. Chapter One

Chapter One

It was totally surreal, Zoey didn't know what was happening to her, one minute she witnessed Kalona snapping Heath's neck and killing him, watching as he fell lifeless onto the stony ground, and next Heath is alive and standing infront of her, how could this happen?

This place felt unreal, it really was too perfect, something didn't feel right about it; it was scary perfect. The white of the flowers, the birthday-cake-icing-blue of the sky and the fact that Heath was alive! Heath saw Zoey's expression, it was one of surprise and of confusion.

"Hey Zo, even though we're finally together and alone, you don't belong here" Heath told her

"And where exactly is _here_? Heath where are we?"

"This is the other world Zo, the place you go when you die, but you're not dead like me so you cant be here, you have to go back"

"but that's the problem Heath, I don't know how I got here, I must be dead if I am here with you, because you are dead"

Heath was about to reply when suddenly the bushes and trees rustled and out stepped a figure all dressed in black. At first Zoey couldn't see his face but saw that he had dark longish hair and romantic features, one thought suddenly came to mind, one word: Kalona!

But as the figure stepped closer and closer to Zoey and Heath, his features became more apparent and Zoey recognised him, she drew in a short sharp breath, it was Loren Blake, the Vampyre Poetry professor that was brutally murdered just a few months earlier, and he was someone she never expected to see again.

"Loren!"

"Hi Zoey, Heath is right, you do not belong here"

"but I don't understand, if you two are dead, then I must be dead also"

"You are not dead Zoey Redbird, it is your soul that wanders afar" Loren told her in a soft romantic and poetic voice, that voice made Zoey weak all over, and the memories came flooding back like a tidal wave…

The time Loren cooked for her in the professors kitchen, the most incredible sandwich…

Making love and losing her virginity in the gym closet…

She shook it off, because surely the expression had to be showing on her face…

"Zo!"

Heath's voice brought her back to the present

"Yeah what?"

Loren Blake was still standing there; he was in black pants, expensive looking ones, and a black dress shirt and was looking more handsome… _ok Zoey get a grip! You got over Loren ages ago because of Neferet…_ she shook off her thoughts once again, she didn't want to remember the time when she walked in on Loren and Neferet in bed together... she decided to focus on Heath, she looked up at him.

"Yeah Heath?"

"Nothing Zo, you were daydreaming"

"Oh, sorry" she could feel her cheeks get hot, she looked at Loren who was smiling down at her seductively.

"What are you doing here Loren? Don't you know how painful the memories of us are? You betrayed me, my trust!"

"I know, but it really wasn't me, it was Neferet's influence, she's the one who wanted to ruin you, she wants to kill you, just like she killed me"


	2. Chapter Two

Chapter Two

"Wait, what? Neferet killed you?! I thought the humans from the church group killed you and Professor Nolan" Zoey was shocked but not surprised at this revelation, this made her hate, no _loathe_, Neferet even more, poor poor Loren…

"No it was Neferet", replied Loren, pulling Zoey out of day dream mode, "I came in between you and her plan to bring you down, she manipulates everyone around her, I wouldn't be surprised if she's got Kalona wrapped around her little finger…" Loren Blake told her, thoughtful, "she is not to be trusted"

Zoey chewed on that, although she already knew Neferet was a manipulative bitch, that wasn't news at all, the thought of her controlling Kalona like a marionette was hilarious.

"That's what I wanted to tell you Zo!" Heath exclaimed suddenly, popping Zoey's thought bubble once again.

"Before I died, I overheard Neferet and Kalona talking, Neferet wants to kill you and Kalona said 'why don't you just behead and impale her just like you did with the two professors?'" Heath imitated Kalona with a mock deep voice, "but she didn't want to, she said she wants to make your death look like an accident"

"Oh My Goddess! Maybe that's what Aphrodite saw in her visions! I have to go back!" then a sharp thought came to the surface, "Oh My Goddess! Stark!"

Just the thought of Stark not coping without her, he being her Warrior and all, made her want to pass out.

"Yeah Stark's soul is probably just as shattered as yours, I wouldn't be surprised if he turns up here" Heath stated.

Oh great! That's exactly what Zoey needed; more boyfriend issues. Not that she wouldn't mind Stark being here with her, she wouldn't, but then that would mean he'd have to die first, and she couldn't have that, having Heath die was bad enough.

"No! He cannot turn up here! Loren you have to go, please? This is too much! First I had Erik issues and Heath issues…" she glanced at Heath and he made an innocent face.

"Sorry Heath, but its true. Then _you_ happened" she spoke to Loren, who had stepped back one step in defence of Zoey's rant, Heath stepped back too, they both knew that Zoey was much more powerful now as a Fledgling High-Priestess who had an affinity for all five of the elements. Zoey continued.

"Of course it didn't help when Erik walked in on us… Then Stark came along… and now there's Kalona in the equation… and now there's the fact that Heath just died in front of me… and now I'm here in… in Purgatory!"

Loren and Heath just stood silently waiting for Zoey to finish her infamous Zoey-rant. When she stopped she noticed them staring at her and at each other.

"Sorry guys, this is all too much for a girl to deal with in a short space of time" she took deep breathes to try and calm herself and sat down on the grass near the water.

"But Zoey you are not just an ordinary girl", Loren Blake told her, he always did know how to tug on a girl's heart strings, Zoey thought. "you are a fledgling High Priestess with remarkable…" he stopped short as he noticed that her fledgling tattoos were missing.

Zoey noticed that he was staring at her body, she suddenly felt exposed, she wrapped her arms around herself.

"What?" she asked him, offended.

"You're tattoos Zoey, they are gone!"

She stood and looked down at her body, he was right, her skin was bare, a blank canvas. Her beautiful, one-of-a-kind Sapphire fledgling markings, were in fact gone.

"Oh My Goddess!" was all she could say at that moment.

"where'd they go Zo? I liked your ink, they were awesome, and sexy" stated a disappointed Heath.

"Maybe I'm not a fledgling anymore like Aphrodite!" Zoey exclaimed out loud, hyperventilating.

"Zoey calm down" Loren placed his hands on both of her shoulders and tried to hold her still, "that is not the case, you still have your Sapphire blue crescent moon mark" he told her.

"Really?" she glanced up at him, her immediate response was to reach up and touch the spot where it was to feel it, but that was useless, you couldn't _feel_ a fledgling mark.

Zoey ran over to the water's edge and looked at her reflection, and sure enough, there it was, her mark was still boldly showing on her forehead. But there were no longer sapphire spirals spreading across her face from it, how could this have happened? She thought, Zoey was stumped for words.


	3. Chapter Three

Chapter Three

"how could this have happened?" Zoey stood up slowly, she was just about pulling out her hair, she was freaking out so bad.

"Maybe this happens when your soul shatters like yours did Zo" Heath told her, she looked at him with a question mark on her face.

"My soul? Heath how do you so much about Vampyre Fledglings and you don't even go to the House of Night?"

"Easy, I have loads of Vampyre and Fledgling friends now" he said with Heath Luck charm smile, putting a hand on her shoulder in reassurance.

"I still don't understand" she sat her butt down on the green grass again. Then she heard Loren Blake's romantic tone.

"Zoey, I believe your soul shattered when you brought spirit to you and cast all your energy out into Kalona to banish him" Zoey looked up at him in disbelief.

"I banished Kalona?" she asked, her voice came out more high pitched than planned, she covered her mouth with her hand in embarrassment.

"Yes you did Zoey" Loren replied, laughing softly, "you were very brave".

He placed a gentle hand on her shoulder as he crouched down next to her and smiled seducingly, the expression of jealousy was obvious on Heath's face, was this guy really going to try and steal his Zoey _again_? Heath thought to himself

"Thanks Loren, I think, but it was an impulse, a reaction to seeing him kill Heath, I had to do something" she gazed up at Heath's friendly familiar face as she said this, he beemed from ear to ear, and then composed himself.

"Zo, even though banishing that evil SOB is good, you didn't have to lose your tatts for me" he told her.

"What do you mean Heath, yes I did, I had to save you… i…I had to do something ok!" she stood up, she could feel the warm wet tears on her cheeks now, "I couldn't just let him do that to you"

Heath took her in his big muscular arms and hugged her, stroking her hair to try and comfort her, she cried into his chest, totally forgetting that she and Heath weren't alone, that Loren Blake was standing right there, jealous that Zoey had chosen Heath's embrace for comfort instead of his.

Loren cleared his throat and excused himself

"I think I should be going now Zoey"

Zoey pulled back out of the safety of Heath's arms and turned around to face Loren, wiping the tears from her face.

"Thank you, it was nice to see you again, even though it brought back bad memories" she told him, Loren stepped forward and wiped her face with his fingers ever so gently, Heath automatically took a protective stance and a jealous expression. Zoey suddenly felt Heath's energy change, and glanced at him looking at Loren coldly.

"Ok! Enough! I am over this multiple boyfriend-jealousy crap! From now on I am pledging celibacy and remaining single!" She began to walk away, but paused and turned back, the boys were stunned and frozen in place. "and I am leaving purgatory!" Zoey turned on her heel, Aphrodite style, and walked away from her two no longer love intests.


	4. Chapter Four

Chapter Four

It was unbelievably easy to walk away from them like that, Zoey was shocked with herself, but something had to be done, she had to take control of her life, and maybe, she thought, just maybe, a celibacy pledge was the right route.

She walked through some hedges and came out the other side into a different scene. Zoey immediately recognised it as the courtyard in which Kalona had killed Heath and where she had thrust spirit at him to banish him. The pebbles crunched under her feet, she looked down at them and smiled, was she back?

Then Zoey noticed her hands, her Fledgling tattoos were back, but instead of being only sapphire, lines of crimson intertwined with the blue, which made them appear purple from a distance.

"Oh My Goddess!" she exclaimed, she really was back, and this time she was a red Fledgling as well as a Blue Fledgling, or a Purple Fledgling?

She looked over the rest of her body, and sure enough, the red and blue lines crossed intricately together over her pale skin. She smiled to herself and then heard a familiar voice calling her name.

"Zoey? Is that really you?"

"Stark! Yeah it's me, over here, I'm back!" she looked towards the sound of his voice and saw him approaching her, bow and arrow in hand, an image of a true warrior, she thought. She ran towards him and hit him like a battering ram, which was like hitting a brick wall for Zoey, because Stark didn't move an inch from the impact.

Stark dropped his bow wrapped his arms around Zoey automatically and kissed her head.

"I've missed you so much Zoey" he almost whispered

Zoey pulled back and looked at him.

"I've taken a vow of celibacy and women's independence Stark, so don't try any boyfriend behaviour out on me" she told him

He put his hands up in surrender

"Sorry, what about warrior behaviour? I couldn't function without my High Priestess"

"I guess that's acceptable" she said with a smile and a guy punch in the shoulder, he laughed and pulled her back into his tight embrace.

"Cant…breathe… Stark" she managed to get out, he loosened his grip

"Sorry, I'm just glad to have my Zoey back"

"No, I'm not _your_ Zoey, Stark, I'm not anyone's Zoey, I'm just Zoey Redbird, High Priestess!"

"Sorry, I messed up again"

"No I'm sorry, it's just… see why I have to take preventative measures and make this vow? My life is way too messed up and I need to be alone for a while" she told him

"But I will not let you be alone Zoey, I am your warrior"

"I know… I meant personal time, and ignore my personal emotions ok?"

"Personal time, got it" he replied with a smile, Zoey smiled warmly back at him, she really was glad to be back in the land of the living, even if it was minus Heath and Loren.


End file.
